The battle cry of Senator Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino, Jr. during the election campaign was “Kung walang korap, walang mahirap.”
He promised to wage a campaign against corruption, which he said deprives the people of thousands and million of pesos a year which should have gone to education, health, and other social services
Gloria Arroyo is the epitome of corruption and deceit. Fertilizer scam, NBN ZTE, Road Users tax, the list is too long for this space.
By Philip Tubeza
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Is The Firm making a comeback?
Former Solicitor General Francisco Chavez Monday assailed what he said were attempts by members of The Firm, a law office formerly associated with the First Couple, to return to the corridors of power with the impending inauguration of the Aquino presidency.
Chavez said that former Defense Secretary Avelino “Nonong” Cruz Jr. was eyeing the post of justice secretary while former Ombudsman Simeon Marcelo wanted to become a member of the Judicial and Bar Council.
Ngayon na sila na ang mga nasa-kapangyarihan ang isang dapat pag-ingatan ng mga nagsuporta kay Noynoy Aquino ay ang makitid na paningin . Na ang tingin sa mundo ay puti lang at itim.
Na kapag kasama ka nila, ikaw ay puti, walang kasalanan at pupunta ka sa langit. Kung ikaw naman ay hindi sa kanila, sumuporta ka kay Manny Villar, Joseph Estrada, Gilbert Teodoro at iba pang kandidato ikaw ay alagad ng kadiliman at pupunta ka sa impyerno.
Sana hindi nila uulitin ang ginawa ni Cory Aquino noong 1986 na lahat na nasilayan nina Marcos ay masama at pinagtatangal sa trabaho kahit ang magagaling. Nasa Department of Foreign Affairs ako na-assign noon at nakita ko ang mga magagaling na katulad nina Amb. Rodolfo Severino ay tinuligsa nina Heherzon Alvarez dahil yun daw ang nagdedepensa kay Marcos sa embassy ng nagpu-portesta sila sa Washingon D.C.
It looks like there would be no boring moments in the Noynoy Aquino presidency.
This early, fireworks are starting to be lighted in the controversy of Gloria Arroyo’s appointment of Renato Corona as Supreme Court chief justice succeeding Reynato Puno who retired today.
Aquino’s adviser, Avelino “Nonong” Cruz, who was also Arroyo’s chief legal adviser until he fell out of grace when he disagreed with her attempts to change the Constitution for her to stay in power forever, told the president-in-waiting to void the Corona’s appointment just what Arroyo’s father , President Diosdado Macapagal, did to the midnight appointments of his predecessor, Carlos Garcia.
by Tetch Torres
Inquirer.net
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Wednesday appointed Supreme Court Associate Justice Renato Corona as the incoming chief justice upon the retirement of Chief Justice Reynato Puno on May 17.
Corona was appointed associate justice by Arroyo on April 9, 2002. He graduated law from the Ateneo Law School in 1974. While studying, he also worked full time in the Office of the Executive Secretary. He ranked 25th in the 1974 Bar examination out of 1,965 candidates.
After law school, he studied Master of Business Administration at the Ateneo Professional Schools and in 1981, he was accepted to the Master of Laws program in Harvard Law School, where he focused on foreign investment policies and the regulation of corporate and financial institutions.
SC: Dire consequences if CJ is appointed by new president VERA Files’ Mario Ignacio was at the rally last Friday in front of the Supreme…
Wala na. Sira na talaga itong Korte Suprema.
Kahapon, nagdesisyun sila na maari daw mag-appoint si Gloria Arroyo ng kapalit ni Chief Justice Reynato Puno na magre-retiro sa Mayo 17.
Siyempre, sigurado yan i-appoint ni Arroyo ang kanyang paboritong Supreme Court justice na si Renato Corona. Kaya sigurado yan, kahit wala na sa Malacañang si Arroyo, protektado siya sa mga kaso niya.
Nandiyan si Merceditas Gutierrez na protektor ni Arroyo at ng kanyang pamilya sa Ombudsman. Ngayon nandyan si Corona ang magiging hepe ng Korte Suprema. Ayos ang sambayanang Pilipino.
Tandaan nyo itong siyam na mga pangalan ng Supreme Court justices na kasama sa pagbabastos ng demokrasya at ng taumbayan: Roberto Abad, Lucas Bersamin,Arturo Brion, Teresita De Castro,Mariano Del Castillo, Jose Mendoza, ,Diosdado Peralta, Jose Perez,at Martin Villarama Jr.
Click to this link for the decision: http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2010/march2010/191002.htm
With breaking News from ABS-CBN online:
The Supreme Court on Wednesday gave President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo a go signal to appoint the replacement of retiring Chief Justice Reynato Puno.
A radio dzMM report said that SC magistrates ruled that President Arroyo can appoint any vacant positions in the judiciary until her term ends in June 30. The decision came after an hour of closed door deliberations by the Court en banc.
The voting:
Nine justices said ‘yes” (Roberto Abad, Lucas Bersamin,Arturo Brion, Teresita De Castro,Mariano Del Castillo, Jose Mendoza, ,Diosdado Peralta, Jose Perez,and Martin Villarama Jr,)
One dissented (Conchita J Carpio-Morales);
Three inhibited (Chief Justice Reynato Puno, Antonio Carpio, Renato Corona);
Two said case is premature as there is no justiciable controversy (Presbitero Velasco and Antonio Eduardo Nachura).
The justices also ordered the Judicial Bar and Council to submit to President Arroyo its shortlist of possible nominees for Chief Justice. Puno, the incumbent Chief Justice, is retiring on May 17.
AFP fails to present detainees
by Norman Bordadora
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Despite a writ of habeas corpus issued by the Supreme Court, the military and the police failed to present before the Court of Appeals Friday the 43 health workers arrested on Feb. 6 on suspicion of being members of the communist New People’s Army (NPA).
Statement of the CHR Chair Leila de Lima:
Based on our team’s follow up interview with, and our own doctors’ physical check up of, the detainees last Thursday, February 11, no allegations and traces of physical torture. There’s one though who claims that during interrogation, he felt some twitching of his thighs which he attributes to some form of electric shock. He also claims to have smelled a gas-like substance. Some male detainees have injuries in their wrists due to tight handcuffs. About two (2) of them have injuries surrounding the eye area due to tight blindfolding.
Our initial findings of mental/psychological torture REMAIN, i.e., continuous blindfolded and handcuffed for 36 hours, the resultant indignities (somebody else feeding them or removing their under wears, forced to wear pampers), repeated interrogations using scare tactics like making them believe that they can be killed or disappear anytime or that something will happen to their families if they don’t cooperate. Also, repeated denial to right to counsel at the time of the arrest, during interrogations and inquest. We also learned that interrogations at odd hours midnight continued even after our first visit last February 8. I immediately called the attention of Gen. Segovia about that. He said he would look into it.
Based on our team’s interview with the two (2) barangay kagawads who accompanied the raiding team and witnessed the search, there appears to be NO indication of planting of firearms or other evidence. I hasten to add though that we’re not prepared at this point to completely rule out such planting of evidence. A further probe is needed on this. I also agree with the detainees’ counsels, and I said this before, that the search warrant is patently defective on its face.
AFP’s failure to produce the 43 detainees at yesterday’s hearing is really a dangerous precedent in our justice system. The cited reason, lack of material time to prepare for transit the so-called high-risk detainees, to my mind, is not a valid one. It goes against the very essence of a writ of habeas corpus. If the AFP authorities had the will to obey the order, they could, with best or earnest efforts, have done so. A contempt citation would have been in order. I just hope and pray that between yesterday and the next hearing on Monday they’re no longer subjected to further interrogations, mental torture, indignities and other human rights violations. May I take this opportunity to issue this stern warning to the AFP authorities and detention officers/personnel to CEASE AND DESIST form performing such and similar acts. Irrespective of who they are, alleged NPAs or not, they all have human rights. No one deserves to be treated inhumanely.
Col. Aurelio Baladad, the representative of the military at the habeas corpus hearing, told the appellate court that there was no time to coordinate security measures for the health workers’ transfer from Camp Capinpin in Tanay, Rizal, to Manila.